Puffed French Toast

This is the best French Toast EVER!!!!  I love French Toast just as it is, but this is like the super hero version of French Toast!  It's amazing!  My kids couldn't get enough of it and Eden still asks for "the sugar toast".  It's pretty easy and oh so yummy!  This recipe is from Our Best Bites!
2 eggs
2 ½ Tbsp. sugar
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. milk
1 c. flour
2 ½ tsp. baking powder
12 slices Texas style toast, cut in half diagonally
In a large skillet or frying pan, heat about 1/4″ of vegetable oil (not olive oil) over medium heat. In a shallow bowl or pie plate, whisk together eggs, sugar, salt, vanilla, milk, flour, and baking powder. Test oil heat by flicking some water into the frying pan. If it pops, reduce the heat. If hardly anything happens, turn up the heat. If it sizzles, it’s just right.
Working quickly, take each 1/2 slice of bread and soak it both sides in the milk/egg/flour mixture. If you leave it in too long, it will get soggy, but you want to make sure enough of the egg mixture has soaked into the bread. Gently shake to remove excess batter and place in hot oil. Cook until puffed, golden brown, and a nice, crispy crust has formed on each side (probably 3-5 minutes per side; you really need to babysit them and make sure they’re cooking correctly) and then remove from oil and drain on a paper towel. While cooking remaining French toast, keep cooked pieces warm in an oven set to the lowest temperature it will go.  
When ready to serve, roll each piece in cinnamon sugar.
If you’re feeling extra naughty, go ahead and drizzle a little maple syrup,buttermilk syrup, strawberry syrup, or scoop some honey butter on there. YUMMY!!!

Whold Grain Banana Pecan Muffins

These are Yum!  If you have bananas that are getting older and older and need something to make other than banana bread then try these.  You won't be disappointed!  I got this recipe from my favorite site-Our Best Bites!  Enjoy!

3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/4 c. whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. honey (you can substitute 1/4 c. sugar here if you prefer)
1/4 c. butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 c. mashed very ripe banana (about 2 large bananas or 3 smaller ones)
1/3 c. low-fat sour cream or plain yogurt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 c. pecans, chopped
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
Preheat the oven to 350. Line a muffin tin with liners–you’ll need about 15-16.
Whisk together the flours, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the sugar, honey (if using), and butter. Add each egg in one at a time, combining completely after each addition but not over-mixing. Add the mashed banana, yogurt, and vanilla. Slowly add in the flour mixture and beat until just combined (don’t over-mix).
Divide the batter evenly (so the cups are about 2/3 full) among 15-16 muffin tins. Combine the chopped pecans and brown sugar and sprinkle them on top of the batter. Bake for 23-28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack and allow to finish cooling. Serve with breakfast or as a snack.

Crow Gravy

It's a funny name, "Crow Gravy." But it's a staple at our house and everyone loves it. It's not fancy-shmancy. It's sort of a redneck dish. It's called Crow Gravy, because I made it up. Maybe I should have called it "MotherBird Gravy." I guess if you wanted to be really boring, you could call it hamburger gravy. I'm never calling it that! I designed this recipe myself. Thought it up in my little tiny head with out any help from anyone. I created it a long time ago when my kids were little and I was desperate for something hot and simple to make. It's one of those nice and easy recipes. And your kids will request it over and over again. A bunch of my married kids came over the other night. We were going through the list of what to cook. Every one of them picked, none other, than Crow Gravy! I took a picture. It's coming soon. Be patient.

Here's the How To's!

Brown a pound of hamburger. Slice in a few onions while browning if you love onions. YUM! For my crew I triple this recipe.
When you are browning the beef, salt and pepper it GOOD! Don't be stingy!
After browning, drain off any grease.

Now add the following:
1 can Cream Of Mushroom Soup. You'll need a can of Cream of Mushroom Soup for every pound of ground beef you use.
Add 1/2 can of milk. And I add a little water too.
Stir that up in the beef respectably! It should be the consistency of runny gravy over the beef. Real creamy. Now if you want lots of creaminess, add two cans of Cream Of Mushroom Soup instead of one.
Next:
Now you can choose any vegetable you like to add next. I'm a green bean fanatic when it comes to this recipe. But any vegetable will do. So I love to add any kind of green beans. If I'm adding fresh, I cook them a little before adding them.
Now here's the secret to making this dish taste great. I like to buy the Wyler's ground beef bouillon. I also like to cook with "Better Than Bouillon." But in this recipe I like the fact I can sprinkle the ground Wyler's. And that's just what I do. I sprinkle a little across the top. NOT TO MUCH! I just sprinkle a little covering the top. I also salt and pepper it and as always add a dollop of butter. Heat that all up and prepare to serve.

Here's the fun part of this recipe. You can serve it on a baked potato. You can serve it on any kind of rice. And you can even serve it over Quinoa if you want to get real healthy. You can even sprinkle a little cheese on top.

Just beware, this dish will disappear fast! It really is super easy, filling, and dang tasty! Perfect pickins' for a bunch of birds!

Sour Cream and Chips

I know you might find this strange. Am I seriously posting this? YES! This is a recipe you can handle. You take your potato chip, I like ruffled Lay's and you get out your sour cream, preferrably the full fat kind, and you stir it aroud all creamy like, and you dip your potato chip in it. Then say hello to your new addiction!

I can't tell you how many people I've introduced this Crow indulgence to.

One more thing. I wasn't sure where to put this recipe. "Main Dish," came to mind.

Enjoy! Remember I warned you! You're going to love it.

Homemade Tortilla Strips

10-12 corn tortillas
Olive oil for frying
Kosher salt

Cut tortillas into strips using a pizza cutter. You can cut 2-3 at a time pretty easily. Heat oil in a large frying pan. Place strips into hot oil and fry until they become crispy. When nice and crispy, remove from oil and place on a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt after each batch.

Fresh Guacamole

Love FRESH guacamole with as many ingredients from the garden as possible? Try this, you'll love it. Add a few shakes of green Tabasco sauce.. Yum. 

3 avocados
Red onion, chopped (about 1/4 c.)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 bunch cilantro leaves, chopped
1 jalapeno, finely chopped (or to taste)
1 large ripe garden tomato (or 2 smaller tomatoes), diced
juice of 1 lime
4-5 shakes green Tabasco sauce
Kosher salt, to taste
Fresh cracked pepper, to taste

Pit avocados and mash in a bowl. If you like your guac kind of chunky, coarsely chop with the side of a fork instead of using the fork to mash it straight down. Carefully stir in remaining ingredients until well mixed. Devour!

Cafe Rio Sweet Pork Salad

Do you love Cafe Rio and Costa Vida? Try this copy cat recipe.


It really is easier than it looks. It only took me about an hour to make (after the pork was in the crock pot). The rice and beans are SUPER easy, you definitely want the beans and rice to get the whole experience! Also, be generous with the cilantro! 

6 large Tortillas 
Shredded cheese, Mexican blend
Cafe Rio Rice 
Cafe Rio Black Beans 
Cafe Rio Sweet Pork 
Lettuce (NOT iceberg, use leafy green or Romaine)
Diced tomato, onion, and cilantro (pico de gallo)
Guacamole 
Sour cream
Tortilla Strips 
Cotija cheese, crumbled (or you can use Parmesan)
Cafe Rio Cilantro Ranch 
OR ***NEW*** Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette 

Here is how we put it all together: First of all, we bought the aluminum deep-dish pans (they had these at the grocery store, you will know when you see them.. they look JUST like the Cafe Rio tins). Lay a tortilla in the bottom of the pan, sprinkle cheese on it, and put in the oven at 375 for about 5 min or until the cheese is melted. Remove from oven, add beans, rice, pork, then lettuce and a little scoop of diced tomato and onions (pico de gallo). Add guacamole (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) and sour cream. Add crushed tortilla chips, a shake of Parmesan cheese, and top with a few cilantro leaves. Serve with the cilantro ranch or vinaigrette dressing and there you have it! (makes about 6 salads)

(scroll down to see the rice, beans, pork, and ranch recipes all together...)

SWEET PORK:
2 pounds pork (use boneless pork ribs)
3 cans Coke (NOT diet)
1/4 c. brown sugar
dash garlic salt
1/4 c. water
1 can diced green chilies
3/4 (10 oz) can red enchilada sauce (Old El Paso brand works well, medium spiciness)
1 c. brown sugar

Put the pork in a heavy duty Ziploc bag to marinade. Add about a can and a half of coke and about 1/4 c. of brown sugar. Marinade for a few hours or overnight.

Drain marinade and put pork, 1/2 can of coke, water, and garlic salt in crock pot on high for about 3-4 hours (or until it shreds easily, but don't let it get TOO dry). Remove pork from crock pot and drain any liquid left in the pot. Shred pork.

In a food processor or blender, blend 1/2 can Coke, chilies, enchilada sauce and remaining brown sugar (about a cup, you can add a little more or less to taste..). If it looks too thick, add more Coke little by little.

Put shredded pork and sauce in crock pot and cook on low for 2 hours. That's it!


CILANTRO-LIME RICE:
1 c. uncooked rice
1 tsp. butter or margarine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
1 can (15 oz) chicken broth
1 cup water
1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tsp. sugar
3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

In a saucepan combine rice, butter, garlic, 1 tsp. lime, chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook on low 15-20 minutes, until rice is tender. Remove from heat. In a small bowl combine lime juice, sugar and cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice and mix in as you fluff the rice.


BLACK BEANS:
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/3 c. tomato juice
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro

In a nonstick skillet, cook garlic and cumin in olive oil over medium heat until you can smell it. Add beans, tomato juice, and salt. Continually stir until heated through. Just before serving stir in the cilantro. (**NOTE** you can add a can of corn, drained, to the beans with a dash of cumin and chili powder if you like. It's not "traditional Cafe Rio", but it tastes great.)


CILANTRO RANCH:
1 packet TRADITIONAL Hidden Valley Ranch mix (not BUTTERMILK)
1 c. mayonnaise
1 c. buttermilk
2 tomatillos, remove husk, diced
1/2 bunch of fresh cilantro
1 clove garlic
juice of 1 lime
1 jalapeno (Want it SPICY? Keep the seeds in it. Want it mild, just remove the seeds.)

Mix all ingredients together in the blender. That's it!
Complements of Favorite Family Recipes.